From Football To Triple Jump

Penisoni Tirau continues to strive to do well in school in order to continue to pursue his passion in the sports field; today, he is one of over 500 athletes who will be representing Fiji to the South Pacific Games in the Solomon Islands next month.

Originally from Nasukamai in Ra with maternal links to Vadradra village in Ba, the 18-year-old shares that he had only ever wanted to play football and tried his hand at Triple Jump when he was 17.

“My love of sports began when I played football, I also featured for the Fiji U20 team in soccer. My school was preparing for the Ba Zone, and I entered the Intermediate Grade of the Triple Jump event. I was in Year 11 when I first tried the Triple Jump in the Ba Zone, and I broke the recordthat year and went on to win my first gold medal at the Coca-Cola Games; it went on from there,” Tirau said.

The Xavier College student, who is from a farming background, is the eldest of seven siblings and enjoys the time he spends mastering his sport.

He says that as much as he enjoys his time on the track and the field, his parents' support has kept him coming back to work on his studies in school.

“My parents would expect me to do well in school first and then shift my focus to training,” he added.

He did just that, and a year after first picking up the sport, Tirau broke records in the Senior Boys Triple Jump he broke records at the Ba Zone and later bagged a gold medal at the Coca-Cola Games earlier this year.

“Balancing training and studies has been tough, but when you love what you do, you will put in the hard yards. I have also been balancing my studies and my sporting activities, especially ever since primary school,” he shared.

He also highlighted that the support from my parents has been immense and has just kept him going from the first day, and the push for him to score good grades to continue to compete was his goal from an early age.

“My parents were very proud when I shared that I would be part of Team Fiji in the Pacific Games, and they continue to remind me to put God first in everything I do,” Tirau said.

Going to the Pacific Games, Tirau hopes to relish every minute of his experience competing at the regional level and says he continues to put in the work to be able to medal at the games next month.

The South Pacific Games will be held from November 19- December 2in the Solomon Islands.

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